The Misplaced City Ordinance

"The question that health officials (and elected officials) in the Lehigh Valley community must address is whether homosexual activities in adult bookstores are a threat to the public health."

- Morning Call editorial, Dec. 29, 1985.

One month later, officials of Allentown's police department and health bureau requested the city solicitor to draft an ordinance that would levy fines and/or jail sentences for owners and managers of adult bookstores who permitted sexual activities to occur on their premises. The ordinance, which was supposed to be prepared within a month, would have required owners to post signs informing patrons that "All sexual acts are forbidden within the premises to reduce the risk of communicable disease transmission." Further, the proposed law would have required bookstore owners to have solid partitions between movie-viewing booths and to allow only one occupant in each viewing cubicle.

Gary Gurian, Allentown's director of health, said the requestfor the ordinance was partly the result of an investigation by Morning Call reporters into sexual activities in the bookstores and an editorial that urged action by the city to determine whether such activity was a health menace. City Solicitor Thomas Anewalt said the first draft of the ordinance for City Council's consideration would be "forthcoming." "If all municipalities don't address this sooner or later," Mr. Anewalt said, "I think there will be a public outcry about it."

That was nearly six months ago. How long does it take the solicitor's office to research the law and draft an ordinance? Obviously more than the month estimated last January. Meantime, the U.S. Supreme Court this week upheld a New York law that permits municipalities to shutter adult bookstores for "lengthy periods of time" which are considered public nuisances because of sexual activities by patrons. The New York case (and subsequent closing of a bookstore) was the result of an undercover police investigation where a deputy testified he had seen patrons engaging in sexual activity and where he had been solicited to participate in homosexual sex acts.

If Allentown's city solicitor sees no merit in the proposed legislation, he should inform the director of health and the chief of police that their request cannot be granted. If there is merit in the legislation, he should draft it, and give City Council the opportunity to debate it.